Register      Login
Marine and Freshwater Research Marine and Freshwater Research Society
Advances in the aquatic sciences
RESEARCH ARTICLE

Can storms and shore armouring exert additive effectson sandy-beach habitats and biota?

Serena Lucrezi A , Thomas A. Schlacher A C and Wayne Robinson B
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations

A Faculty of Science, Health & Education, University of the Sunshine Coast, Maroochydore DC, Qld 4558, Australia.

B School of Environmental Sciences, Charles Sturt University, Old Sydney Road, Thurgoona,NSW 2641, Australia.

C Corresponding author. Email: tschlach@usc.edu.au

Marine and Freshwater Research 61(9) 951-962 https://doi.org/10.1071/MF09259
Submitted: 13 October 2009  Accepted: 26 January 2010   Published: 23 September 2010

Abstract

Increased storminess is a likely consequence of global climate change; its effects may be most dramatic on coasts dominated by sandy beaches. This scenario demands that the impacts of storms and the role of armouring structures, constructed as storm defences, are better understood. Here, we assess how a relatively small storm affected beach morphology and macrobenthos, and whether a seawall can modulate such impacts. The study system was a small (<1.5 km long) beach, bisected into parts with and without a seawall. The beach became narrower and steeper during the storm, when 26% of the subaerial sediment prism eroded from the armoured section; sand losses on the unarmoured part were one-fifth of those on the armoured part. Densities of ghost crabs (Ocypode) dropped significantly (36%) and were to some extent modulated by shore armouring; losses were high (62%) just seawards of the seawall where post-storm densities remained consistently lower. There was no ecological recovery in the short term, with most (83%) post-storm density values of crabs being lower, and crab counts in front of the seawall being depressed up to 3 months after the storm. Seawalls can change the resilience of beaches to storms, which may result in stronger ecological effects on armoured coasts.

Additional keywords: climate change, erosion, ghost crabs, Ocypode, recovery, sandy shores, storm impacts.


Acknowledgements

We greatly appreciate the help of our field assistants, especially Paul Cashion, Tara Nielsen, Luke Thompson and Lee Clarke who surveyed beaches come storm or sunshine. Neil Tindale gave freely of his meteorology expertise on storms. The assistance of Sue Nicholls with the Trend software is greatly appreciated, as well as the provision of wave-monitoring data (Environmental Protection Agency), weather information (Bureau of Meteorology) and beach visitor numbers (Sunshine Coast Regional Council). This work was partly financed by a Ph.D. scholarship to S.L. by the University of the Sunshine Coast. We appreciate the constructive feedback by reviewers, which greatly improved the manuscript.


References

Ashton, A. D. , Donnelly, J. P. , and Evans, R. L. (2008). A discussion of the potential impacts of climate change on the shorelines of the northeastern USA. Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change 13, 719–743.
Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | Brown A. C., Nordstrom K., McLachlan A., Jackson N. L., and Sherman D. J. (2008). Sandy shores of the near future. In ‘Aquatic Ecosystems’. (Ed. N. V. C. Polunin.) pp. 263–280. (Cambridge University Press: Cambridge, UK.)

Castelle, B. , Le Corre, Y. , and Tomlinson, R. (2008). Can the Gold Coast beaches withstand extreme events? Geo-Marine Letters 28, 23–30.
Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | Chiew F., and Siriwardena L. (2005). ‘Trend (Trend/Change Detection Software) – User Guide.’ (CRC Catchment Hydrology: Melbourne.)

Christoffers E. W. (1986). Ecology of the ghost crab Ocypode quadrata (Fabricius) on Assateague Island, Maryland, and the impacts of various human uses of the beach on their distribution and abundance. Ph.D. Thesis, Michigan State University, Ann Harbor, MI.

Defeo, O. , McLachlan, A. , Schoeman, D. S. , Schlacher, T. A. , and Dugan, J. , et al. (2009). Threats to sandy beach ecosystems: a review. Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science 81, 1–12.
Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | IPCC (2007). ‘Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.’ Available at http://www.ipcc.ch [verified 27 January 2010].

Jaramillo, E. , Croker, R. A. , and Hatfield, E. B. (1987). Long-term structure, disturbance, and recolonization of macroinfauna in a New Hampshire sand beach. Canadian Journal of Zoology 65, 3024–3031.
Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |

Jones, A. R. , Gladstone, W. , and Hacking, N. J. (2007). Australian sandy-beach ecosystems and climate change: ecology and management. Australian Zoologist 34, 190–202.


Jones, A. R. , Murray, A. , Lasiak, T. A. , and Marsh, R. E. (2008). The effects of beach nourishment on the sandy-beach amphipod Exoediceros fossor: impact and recovery in Botany Bay, New South Wales, Australia. Marine Ecology (Berlin) 29(S1), 28–36.
Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |

List, J. H. , Farris, A. S. , and Sullivan, C. (2006). Reversing storm hotspots on sandy beaches: spatial and temporal characteristics. Marine Geology 226, 261–279.
Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |

Lucrezi, S. , Schlacher, T. A. , and Walker, S. J. (2009a). Monitoring human impacts on sandy shore ecosystems: a test of ghost crabs (Ocypode spp.) as biological indicators on an urban beach. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment 152, 413–424.
Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | PubMed |

Lucrezi, S. , Schlacher, T. A. , and Robinson, W. (2009b). Human disturbance as a cause of bias in ecological indicators for sandy beaches: experimental evidence for the effects of human trampling on ghost crabs (Ocypode spp.). Ecological Indicators 9, 913–921.
Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |

McLachlan, A. , and Dorvlo, A. (2005). Global patterns in sandy beach macrobenthic communities. Journal of Coastal Research 21, 674–687.
Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |

Morton, R. A. , Paine, J. G. , and Gibeaut, J. C. (1994). Stages and durations of post-storm beach recovery, southeastern Texas Coast, USA. Journal of Coastal Research 10, 884–908.


Moss, D. , and McPhee, D. P. (2006). The impacts of recreational four-wheel driving on the abundance of the ghost crab (Ocypode cordimanus) on a subtropical sandy beach in SE Queensland. Coastal Management 34, 133–140.
Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |

Peterson, C. H. , Bishop, M. J. , Johnson, G. A. , D’Anna, L. M. , and Manning, L. M. (2006). Exploiting beach filling as an unaffordable experiment: benthic intertidal impacts propagating upwards to shorebirds. Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology 338, 205–221.
Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |

Polomé, P. , Marzetti, S. , and van der Veen, A. (2005). Economic and social demands for coastal protection. Coastal Engineering 52, 819–840.
Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |

Regnauld, H. , Pirazzoli, P. A. , Morvan, G. , and Ruz, M. (2004). Impacts of storms and evolution of the coastline in western France. Marine Geology 210, 325–337.
Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |

Rocke, D. M. (1989). Robust control charts. Technometrics 31, 173–184.
Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |

Schlacher, T. A. , and Thompson, L. M. C. (2008). Physical impacts caused by off-road vehicles (ORVs) to sandy beaches: spatial quantification of car tracks on an Australian barrier island. Journal of Coastal Research 24, 234–242.
Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |

Schlacher, T. A. , Schoeman, D. S. , Lastra, M. , Jones, A. , and Dugan, J. , et al. (2006). Neglected ecosystems bear the brunt of change. Ethology, Ecology and Evolution 18, 349–351.
Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |

Schlacher, T. A. , Thompson, L. M. C. , and Price, S. (2007a). Vehicles versus conservation of invertebrates on sandy beaches: quantifying direct mortalities inflicted by off-road vehicles (ORVs) on ghost crabs. Marine Ecology – Evolutionary Perspective 28, 354–367.


Schlacher, T. A. , Dugan, J. , Schoeman, D. S. , Lastra, M. , and Jones, A. , et al. (2007b). Sandy beaches at the brink. Diversity & Distributions 13, 556–560.
Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |

Schlacher, T. A. , Schoeman, D. S. , Dugan, J. E. , Lastra, M. , and Jones, A. , et al. (2008). Sandy beach ecosystems: key features, sampling issues, management challenges and climate change impacts. Marine Ecology 29(S1), 70–90.
Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |

Short, A. D. (1996). The role of wave height, period, slope, tide range and embaymentisation in beach classifications – a review. Revista Chilena de Historia Natural 69, 589–604.


Slott, J. M. , Murray, A. B. , Ashton, A. D. , and Crowley, T. J. (2006). Coastline responses to changing storm patterns. Geophysical Research Letters 33, L18404.
Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |

Sousa, W. P. (1984). The role of disturbance in natural communities. Annual Review of Ecology and Systematics 15, 353–391.
Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |

Tõnisson, H. , Orviku, K. , Jaagus, J. , Suursaar, U. , and Kont, A. , et al. (2008). Coastal damages on Saaremaa Island, Estonia, caused by the extreme storm and flooding on January 9, 2005. Journal of Coastal Research 24, 602–614.
Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |

Walker, S. J. , Schlacher, T. A. , and Thompson, L. M. C. (2008). Habitat modification in a dynamic environment: the influence of a small artificial groyne on macrofaunal assemblages of a sandy beach. Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science 79, 24–34.
Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |

Weston, M. A. , and Elgar, M. A. (2005). Disturbance to brood-rearing hooded plover Thinornis rubricollis: responses and consequences. Bird Conservation International 15, 193–209.
Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |

Wong, P. P. (2003). Where have all the beaches gone? Coastal erosion in the tropics. Singapore Journal of Tropical Geography 24, 111–132.
Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |

Zhang, K. Q. , Douglas, B. , and Leatherman, S. (2002). Do storms cause long-term beach erosion along the US East Barrier Coast? Journal of Geology 110, 493–502.
Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |

Zwiers, F. W. , and von Storch, H. (1995). Taking serial correlation into account in tests of the mean. Journal of Climate 8, 336–351.
Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |